WQXR Blogs List

Donnacha Dennehy: I. "Mine is not the standard childhood"

Undertaking Overtones

Donnacha Dennehy's use of overtones has made his sound distinct and hypnotizing.

Donnacha Dennehy found his calling at an early age, recording 25-minute recorder sonatas into cassettes when he was nine and discovering Stockhausen a year later. Now, he's a heavyweight in the world of contemporary music. With his unique use of overtones and deep understanding of the mechanics of sound, his compositional voice stands out. Listen to movement one of Meet the Composer Episode Three.